


I Said I'd Never Leave You Again, And I Meant It

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [15]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Acxa and Keith are twins, Awkward Conversations, Bonding, Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Foster Care, Jealousy, Keith Bonding With His Mom, Light Angst, Mom of Marmora, Nests, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-03
Updated: 2018-07-17
Packaged: 2019-03-26 10:42:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13856136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: "I left you once, and I'll never leave you again."Krolia meant those words.She was determined to get to know this closed off, guarded boy that was her son. It was a long process, she knew that. But she was determined.And, well, if she needed the help of Keith's pack along the way, she wouldn't exactly be ashamed about it.(AKA The "Keith Building A Relationship With His Mom" fic series)((MAJOR SPOILERS FOR SEASON 5!!))





	1. To Achieve a Goal, You Must Start It

**Author's Note:**

> I'd just like to say that Krolia could stab me and I would thank her.

Keith couldn't believe it.

All his life, he had wanted to see him mom at least once. He had soent days thinking about what she may look like, sound like, did he resemble her? He didn't have any pictures to go off of, no one to look for.

When Kolivan had first told Keith about his mission, and showed him a picture of Krolia, Keith couldn't deny the tiny flicker of hope that started in his chest. Keith looked into her face and saw many features that he himself had. Of course, there were thousands, probably millions or billions of Galra, it was probably just a coincidence.

And so, the little flicker was stepped on until it turned into a pile of nothing but smoke and smoldering embers.

"I left you once, and I'll never leave you again." Was the phrase that really got Keith's brain gears turning. He had never seen this girl before in his life, how could she have left him? Unless she was the mother that had left Keith so long ago, before he was old enough to remember anything.

"It was mine once, before I gave it to your father." Keith couldn't believe it. He wasn't sure he wanted to believe it. This woman was his mother, no doubt about it. A million thoughts raced through his head, a million questions, and yet he didn't have anything to say. His mind was simultaneously working overtime and shutting down because it had spontaneously combusted. The woman, Krolia, put a gentle hand on Keith's arm.

"Keith, we have a lot to talk about, and I know you must have so many questions, I do too. But we must focus on getting back to headquarters now. I promise, once we are there, we will discuss whatever you wish." She said. Keith opened his mouth as if to say something, but he just closed it and nodded. He knew he would start crying if he tried to talk, he could feel the lump forming in his throat. He really didn't want his first words to his mom to be while he was crying.

The ride back to headquarters really wasn't as long as it seemed to be for Keith. The air was tense, unsure, and he had so many things he wanted to ask if he wasn't focused on getting them safely back to headquarters.

As he stepped out of the small pod, he was met by the five different people he had become to accustomed to seeing. Kolivan, a slightly worried look, this time for multiple reasons. Ulaz, who was anxious to search his kit for injuries. Thace, who was always there to offer comfort if the mission had shaken Keith. Antok, there to cheer up the kit, make him forget about the heaviness of missions. Regris did all four, really. He was multitalented.

Keith was wrapped in a hug by Thace, who rubbed his back gently. A rough tongue smoothed over his skin and the fine layer of purple fur that covered his body, gentle and reassuring as Ulaz probed for injuries. Kolivan gently patted Keith's head, smoothing his claws through the mullet that had become Keith's trademark. Antok wrapped his tail around Keith's waist, silent for right now. They knew that Keith was most likely going through a lot of turmoil at that moment. Kolivan turned around and approached Krolia.

"Krolia, are you injured? Ulaz can take you to the medical bay if it is required." He said. Krolia shook her head.

"I am fine, Kolivan, thank you for checking, though. I understand that you must be Keith's pack, and I do not wish to be intruding on pack bonding such as this, but I promised Keith that we could have a discussion if he so wished. If you could, please send him to my room when or if he is ready." She said. Kolivan smiled gently.

"Krolia, no need to be so formal. Yes, I am your superior, but there is no need to be so formal about matters such as this. Of course, we will send him your way when he is ready. I warn you, though, he is rather guarded. His emotions nearly always come out as anger. He most likely does not direct it at you." He said. Krolia smiled a bit and nodded, turning on her heel and walking out of the hangars and towards her room.

-

It was two vargas later, and Keith had gathered his thoughts enough to have a rational conversation. For the first time, he found himself hesitant to leave the safe, protective arms of his pack. But he knew he had to.

The walk to Krolia's room really shouldn't have been as long as Keith thought it was. He supposed it was the first time he had genuinely felt nervous. He had dreamed of meeting his mom for years, and now that he had, he wasn't sure what to think.

Two soft knocks on the door alerted Krolia to the fact that someone was at her door. She got up and slid the doors open, smiling kindly at Keith. She knew that as nervous as she was, Keith must be ten times as nervous.

"Keith, come inside." She said. Keith did so, standing awkwardly at the edge of the nest that took uo a majority of the room. Krolia sat down quietly.

"You can sit down, Keith, make yourself comfortable." She invited. Keith sat down just inside the edge of the nest, folding his hands in his lap. Krolia smiled kindly, resisting the urge to pull Keith into a hug. Something told her he wouldn't appreciate it. Things were silemt for several moments before Keith spoke.

"Why did you leave?" He asked. Krolia had suspected that would be his first question.

"Well, Keith, a lot of reasons. Ultimately, I didn't want to. I wanted to stay with you and your father. However, a war was going on, one that the blades had to be a part of. I would have abandoned my spot at the blades to be with you ina heartbeat, though. But your father's species, humans, they have not even travelled beyond their own solar system. The knowledge of aliens existing would have led to you, a human with alien blood, never having a peaceful childhood. I couldn't allow that. I know these sound fake, rehearsed, and I know they're not good reasons, but at the time I thought I was doing what was best for you." Krolia said. Keith nodded. He supposed there were never really right or wronf answers for this type of thing.

"Can... can you ask a question now? Or just... talk? I mean, you don't have to, I just need a bit of time to think through that before asking something else." Keith said. Krolia nodded patiently.

"Of course, Keith. Take as much time as you need. How are you so far away from Earth?" She asked. Keith shrugged a bit.

"Its a long story. Basically, I got kicked out of my school and lived in a shack in the desert near my school. My friend Shiro had gone into space for a mission and was imprisoned by Galra, but he escaped and told me and some other people about Voltron. Then we found the blue lion on Earth and it took us out into space and now we're just kind of here and fighting with Voltron? I mean, I'm with the blades now but still." Keith said. Krolia stared at him in shock for a few moments before her face split into a grin.

"That's an amazing story, Keith. I'd love to hear it in more deatil at some point in the future." She said. Keoth nodded a bit, taking a deep breath.

"Why did you go to Earth in the first place?" Keith asked. Krolia tilted her head.

"I'm... not sure what you are asking." She said. Keith shrugged a bit.

"When you met my dad, why were originally on Earth?"

"Oh! Well, I was there for scouting, really. Scouting for land. But humans covered most of the Earth, it was useless to us to operate out of." Krolia said. Keith nodded a bit and stretched his legs out from their curled up position.

"Why did you leave Voltron?" Krolia asked. Keith tensed up a bit.

"That's a bit personal, do I have to answer that?" He asked. He hated not answering, but he really didn't want to spill his friendship problems to someone he just met.

"Of course not, Keith. Do what makes you comfortable, alright?" Krolia said. Keith nodded and yawned. It was getting late and he was tired. Krolia reached over and gently placed a hand on his arm.

"I am glad that we could have a rational discussion, but it is getting late and kits as young as you should be getting to bed. Feel free to come visit at any time, alright? I have a feeling I will not be going on many missions because I was on that one for many decafeebs." She said. Keith nodded and bit and got up.

"Thank you. Is it alright if I come visit tomorrow? I still have a lot of questions." He said. Krolia nodded as a response, smiling.

"Of course. Goodnight, sleep well." She said. Keith nodded.

"I will, goodnight." He said, walking out of the room. That had gone better than he had expected. He supposed if he wasn't given time to sort through his thoughts he would have snapped at her in anger he wasn't sure wouod be directed at her. Still, she was nice, understanding. She had made him feel as comcortable as possible, as if he wasn't talking to the mom he just met after she left eighteen years ago. It had been... nice, to talk to her.

Krolia smiled softly and she adjusted the blankets of her nest so that she could sleep. It was a beginning, and in her opinion, a rather good one at that.


	2. Sleep in the Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith can't sleep. The next morning, he goes to visit Krolia, and he realizes that he truly wants to be around her.

Sleep didn’t come easy for Keith that night. In fact, he was sure it had never come at all. His head was filled with so many thoughts it was impossible to sort through them all.

He wanted to get to know his mom. Yet, at the same time, he didn’t want to. He was scared to. He wanted to go and hug Krolia and never let go and yet, he wanted to push her away, to let her feel the pain he had felt for eighteen long, endless years. He wanted to talk to her for hours on end but at the same time he didn’t want to even look at her. It was just so confusing for Keith. He didn’t understand it, and that scared him just the tiniest bit. 

For so long, he had wanted to know who his mom was. He wanted to have a relationship with her and to get to know her. Now, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He still wanted a relationship with Krolia, but how did he go about doing that when so many things were going through his head?

As he stared out at the stars passing by the window in the pack’s room, Keith considered going to see Krolia then. He didn’t want to disturb her sleep, however, so he refrained from getting up right then. He looked around the nest and couldn’t help but smile at what he saw; Thace was sleeping against Ulaz, with Regris curled up between them, Antok was to Keith’s left and Kolivan was on his right, protecting him. What would they say if they knew he awake at such an hour?

As the lights began to brighten in a simulation of sunrise, he felt his packmates beginning to stir from their sleep. He got up alongside them, gathering clothes for the day. He wanted to go see Krolia after he ate, but what if she wanted to train? Keith sighed a bit as he changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, pulling his signature cropped red jacket over his shoulders.

He walked with his pack to the dining hall, trying to hide the fact that he hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep that night. He grabbed a tall cup of coffee, or at least what he thought resembled coffee. It perked him up anyways. He never had a large breakfast, settling for a small plate of food. As he ate, he seriously contemplated going and visiting Krolia after he ate. 

Would she be mad if he visited her this early in the morning? He and his pack did wake up relatively early most days. He ultimately decided to go visit her. The worst case scenario would be being sent away after all, right?

-

Keith walked down the long, winding hallways of the marmorite headquarters. He knew the way from his own room to Krolia’s, but not from the dining room to said room. So, he traced his steps back to his own room, taking the route he had gone the night before. It was time-consuming, but Keith was sure that wandering aimlessly would be even more so.

Standing in front of the tall door, Keith suddenly wanted to call the whole thing off. He wanted to turn away and go back to his room, curling up in his nest. Or, even better, he could train. That always soothed his nerves. But he knew that he couldn’t do that. This was a situation that he couldn’t run away from, not if he wanted to build a relationship with his mother.

Keith raised a fist and rapped it three times on the door, making sure it was loud enough to be heard. As he had learned, the doors were rather thick compared to doors on Earth or at the castle of lions. After a few beats, counted by the organ knocking against Keith’s rib cage, he heard a soft “come in”.

Stepping inside, Keith could see just how homely the room actually looked. A nest was covering a large portion of the room, and knick knacks overed the shelves. He could recognize several things from Earth, which he assumed were from before Krolia had had him, as all of the items had been made prior to or during the year of his birth. Krolia was sitting in the nest, her datapad playing some sort of show that Keith couldn’t place the genre of.

“Good morning, Keith. Did you sleep well?” Krolia asked, pausing the show to give Keith her full attention. Keith couldn’t help but smile. It was the little actions like pausing her show that told Keith that Krolia truly cared about what he had to say.

“Not really. I didn’t sleep at all, actually.” Keith said. Krolia frowned a bit.

“That isn’t good, Keith. Is this a regular occurence?” She asked. She had a suspicion that Keith couldn’t sleep because of the events of the day, but she just wanted to make sure it wasn’t a regular occurence. As if confirming her suspicions, Keith shook his head in response to her question.

Krolia patted the soft floor of the nest, inviting Keith to sit down. Keith hesitated for a moment before settling into the blankets and pillows, feeling his eyelids flutter out of exhaustion.

“You look like a Galra, yet I know you were born with human features. When did this happen?” Krolia asked. Keith thought for a moment.

“A few movements ago? Maybe a feeb.” Keith said. Krolia nodded and leaned forward to examine Keith’s Galra features. Not too close, though, she wanted to avoid making Keith uncomfortable.

“I know you came to space with friends. Do they like your new appearance?” Krolia asked. Keith felt himself tearing up as he shook his head. He hated that his friends ignored him simoly for looking like a Galra. Krolia frowned and wrapped an arm around Keith’s shoulders in a gentle half-hug.

“Oh, kit, what is wrong?” She asked. Keith sniffled and swiped the tears away from his eyes.

“Nothing, I’m fine, I just… they started ignoring me after I found out I was part Galra. Then it got better and we were on better terms. And then I got Galra features and they ignored me again.” He said. Krolia growled low in her throat, angry and protective. Keith jumped at the sound.

“No no no! It's fine, mom, I promise! Shiro was imprisoned by Galra and they took his arm! I understand why he acts this way! And Allura, she’s Altean, her entire race was killed off by Galra! I understand.” Keith said, tears trailing down his cheeks. Krolia reached forward and wiped the tears away.

“That is not a good excuse, my kit. You are still Keith, Galra-looking or not. You are still you.” Krolia said, opening her arms invitingly for a hug. Keith leaned forward against her, crying into her shoulder as Krolia wrapped her arms around him.

Keith heard gentle shushing noises, felt a hand rubbing his back. He felt his eyelids drooping heavily as Krolia started rumbling, a sound and feeling that soothed him easily.

“I’m tired, mom.” Keith mumbled. Krolia smiled fondly at Keith.

“Go to sleep then, my kit.” Krolia said. Keith yawned and let his eyes slip closed, his breathing evening out. Krolia reached over and grabbed her datapad, sending a message to Kolivan.

‘Keith is here with me. He’s asleep. Do you want to come get him or is he okay being in here?’

It wasn’t long before Kolivan sent a message back.

‘Keep him with you. If he fell asleep around you, he wants to wake up around you. Its his own little way of showing that he wants to be around you.’


	3. Explanations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith wakes up from his crying fit. He then ends up having to explain the concept of foster care to Krolia who is, to say the least, not happy.

Keith woke up what felt like hours later, his eyes blinking blearily open. He knew he couldn’t have been asleep for long due to the fact that his head still felt heavy and fuzzy and throbbing with the beginnings of a headache like it always did after Keith allowed himself a good, long cry session. 

He felt arms wrapped around him securely. They were warm and reassuring, but he knew just by the touch that it wasn’t a member of his pack. He looked up and saw Krolia looking down at him with a tender, caring expression. He felt, then, the warm damp cloth that Krolia was using was scrub his face clean of tear tracks. 

“Do you want to explain what that was about, my kit? You don’t have to, of course.” Krolia said. Keith stayed silent for several moments, soaking in the feeling of being cared for by his mother. It was a feeling he had longed for his entire life. His pack could mimic the feeling, but it was nowhere near close to filling the hole in Keith’s heart that had existed for eighteen years.

“I just… it was overwhelming. The other paladins, they’re the closest thing I had to a family for so long. It hurt so badly that they rejected me.” Keith said eventually. Krolia nodded.

“Where, exactly, do these paladins reside? I just wish to talk.” Krolia said. Keith knew exactly what those words meant. He had heard those words from Shiro after the man had found out someone was picking on 15-year-old Keith.

“Mom, its fine, its okay. They’ll come around eventually. They did when they found out I was part Galra.” Keith said. Krolia nodded a bit, and Keith could feel her visibly relax.

“They did not know?” Krolia asked, confused.

“I didn’t even know until my blade of marmora trials.” Keith said. Krolia frowned.

“Your father never told you?” She asked.

“Well, dad left when I was five, and all of my foster parents assumed my mom had left or died, not that she was an alien.” Keith said simply. Krolia tensed up as she listened to her son.

“Left? Your father left? What foster parents? What even are foster parents?” Krolia asked.

“Yeah, dad left. I don’t know why. And foster parents… well, after a kid is orphaned or they’re taken away from their parents, they’re placed with families who get money from the government to house the kids. Sometimes they’re adopted, sometimes not. I never was.” Keith said. Krolia whined in distress and tightened her arms around Keith, and Keith melted deeper into the embrace.

“You said all of the foster parents?” Krolia asked.

“Well, none of the families could really handle me, according to them. I was too confrontational. So, I was passed around a lot of families before I went to the Garrison. I didn’t care. They never felt like they cared. Yeah, a lot of them were genuine in their efforts to get to know me, but some of them were just in it for the money.” Keith explained.

“I am glad you are here, Keith. That sounds awful.” Krolia said. Keith smiled and shrugged.

“Sometimes it was. Sometimes it was pretty decent. It depended of the family.” Keith said. “But I have you now, right? And Kolivan, Ulaz, Thace, Antok, and Regris?”

Krolia nuzzled Keith’s hair.

“Absolutely. We will never give you away for anything, my kit. We care about you so, so much.”


	4. Secret Sibling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith finds a familiar stranger in a room he's never seen before. Turns out, this stranger may be Keith's twin sibling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is super rushed but I just wanted to get this out.

It had been several days since Keith’s crying fit around Krolia. He wasn’t particularly embarrassed about the incident, Krolia never gave him a reason to be. 

Keith had started a routine where he would go and have a conversation with Krolia at some point during his day, usually after the nap he always had after lunch after finding out that it was a kit thing that he actually needed. The conversation could last for several vargas, or just a few minutes, but it was hardly awkward. Krolia never made it seem awkward. Sometimes, all Keith would want was a hug. He was still extremely hesitant to do that one, but sometimes he would work up the courage to quickly hug Krolia. 

It was one of those days. Keith had had plans to play fight with Regris that day after lunch, but the other kit had woken up sick, an illness that Ulaz had reassured Keith was very common and not at all harmful. But it still required bedrest and sleep to recover. 

So, Keith occupied himself by exploring the base. He hadn’t really explored much outside of his nesting room, his personal room, the dining hall, the training room, the medical bay, and the hangars. Currently, he was standing at a door that had a label on it. It definitely wasn’t a nesting room, it was a public room for anyone to enter and spend time in. But he couldn’t exactly figure out what the Galran words said, and there was no one else in the hallway to tell him what it said.

Keith pushed open the door and blinked in shock at what he saw. If Keith wasn’t sure about where he was, he would have thought he was suddenly in the wild. There was a strange synthetic material covering the ground that felt like grass, but it was bright orange rather than green. The room had a warmth to it that the rest of the base didn’t have. Keith soon discovered that it was coming from a large light that mimicked a heat lamp. The light resembled light from a sun, and it instantly sent a shiver of satisfaction through Keith at the heat he missed from Earth.

There was another figure dozing in the grass, seeming to be basking in the sun like a cat. Well, it wouldn’t actually surprise Keith if that actually was the case, Galra seemed to have very similar mannerisms to a common housecat on Earth. The figure had their back to him, which made it hard to figure out who exactly it was. Keith hesitantly cleared his throat.

“Um.. excuse me?” Keith called to the figure. His voice was soft just in case the figure happened to be asleep. Instead, the figure shifted a bit in response.

“Yes?” They asked, their voice sleepy and lazy.

“Can you tell me what exactly this room is?” Keith asked, stepping further into the room. The grass-like substance felt so nice against his bare feet, warm from the heat light.

“A basking room.” The figure said, turning to face Keith. “You know, where yo-” they cut off as they locked eyes with Keith.

“You… I know you.” Keith said. The figure had bluish skin and short indigo hair. The same appearance of the Galra that had spared Keith’s life several time. The figure sighed.

“Yes, I suppose you do. I suppose I owe an explanation now?” The figure said. Keith nodded, sitting next to the figure hesitantly when they indicated to it.

“Well, I am an operative of the blade. I was on a long term mission for the blade and I ended up as a general of prince Lotor. I saw you and I just… couldn’t kill you, in a weird way? This is hard to explain, but you’re human, right?” They asked. Keith nodded.

“Half-human, but yeah.” Keith said. The figure nodded.

“Yes, well, so am I. I grew up among the blades because I looked more Galra. My mother always told me she left a twin brother of mine of Earth because of he looked more human, I just couldn’t risk killing you if you happened to be him.” They said. Keith nodded, his brows furrowed in confusion.

“My name is Acxa, by the way.” She said.

“Keith.”

“Well… do you have any family here on the base? I’m sorry, that sounds really rude, that’s personal information. I’m just curious considering that you’re half human and all…” Acxa said. Keith nodded.

“I understand. I have my mom, Krolia, and my pack if you count that as family but I’m pretty sure you were talking about biological family.” Keith said. Acxa stared at Keith in silence before getting up and helping him up. Keith was confused when Acxa led him towards Krolia’s room. 

“Acxa? What’s going on?” Keith asked.

“Mom needs to explain why you look like a Galra.” Acxa said. Her grip was gentle on Keith’s wrist, yet it was tight enough to pull Keith along if he cooperated. Keith frowned. What was Acxa talking about?

Acxa reached up and rapped on Krolia’s door when they came to it. Keith was uneasy, deterred by Acxa’s silence. Acxa realized this and gently, hesitantly rubbed Keith’s back.

“Don’t worry. Nothing is wrong.” She said as the door opened, revealing Krolia. Krolia smiled when she saw them.

“Hello my kits. Yes, I know you want an explanation. Com inside and make yourselves comfortable, this will take a while.” Krolia said, stepping aside from her door.


	5. Keith + Emotions Are A Weird Thing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Acxa are due for an explanation of events.

Acxa and Keith settled into the comfortable nest that Krolia had constructed. Krolia sat down in front of them, sighing at Acxa’s impatient glance and her heart melting at Keith’s thoroughly confused and a bit frightened one. 

“Well, where do you want me to start, my kits?” Krolia asked. She was going to explain everything they wanted to know, first, and fill in details along the way.

“Is this really my brother? And if he is, why does he look like a Galra? You said he was born with human features.” Acxa said. Krolia nodded a bit.

“Yes, Acxa, this is your twin brother, Keith. And yes, he was born with human features just like I told you. Now that he is in an environment more suited for Galra, however, Galra features are beginning to show.” Krolia said. Keith frowned.

“Why didn’t you tell me I had a sister?” Keith questioned, his hands balling into fists in the blankets as he tried to reign in the emotions that were waging war within him.

“I was going to tell you, Keith, but I never knew of a time that it wouldn’t upset you.” Krolia said. Keith frowned deeper, letting go of the blankets.

“So, you decided to take her with you back to the blade? And not me?” Keith said. Acxa reached forward and placed a hesitant hand on Keith back, retreating when he roughly shrugged the hand off.

“Keith, my kit, settle down. Yes, I brought her back here with me because Acxa was born with Galra features. It was to protect her, just as leaving you on Earth was to protect you.” Krolia said gently. Acxa sighed a bit.

“You had our dad, didn’t you, Keith? I heard he was a good person, you must have had fun.” Acxa said. She thought it was good thing to say, but apparently, Keith had other plans.

“No, I didn’t, actually. He left so early I barely remember it! You probably heard all about him, didn’t you? I didn’t hear anything about mom, and I barely remember dad!” Keith shouted. Krolia gripped Keith’s shoulder.

“Kit, you have every right to be angry with me. But I will not let you yell at Acxa like that. She does not deserve it.” Krolia said sternly. All fight seemed to have left Keith, and he sighed.

“You… you’re right. I’m really sorry, Acxa. It wasn’t your fault.” Keith said softly. Acxa smiled gently and reached forward, placing her hand on his back again, rubbing gently when Keith didn’t pull away.

“Its alright, Keith. I understand that you were upset, you have every right to be.” She said. Her eyes widened when she saw tears gathering in Keith’s eyes. “Oh quiznak, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” She asked. She was definitely out of her element at the sight. Keith nodded.

“Yeah… yeah, I’m fine. Its just a lot to process.” Keith said softly. Acxa smiled gently and nodded.

“I wouldn’t doubt it, Keith.” She said. Krolia wrapped an arm around Keith and smiled.

“Do you want to go back to your pack or do you want to stay here?” Krolia questioned.

“Can I stay here? I mean, I kind of want to talk to both of you more…” Keith admitted, flushing sheepishly.

“Of course you can stay here, Keith. Settle down with a blanket, alright? You too, Acxa. You both need naps, you are young kits.” Krolia said. Keith grumbled a bit.

“I already took a nap today, though.” Keith said.

“Another one won’t hurt. I know emotional things like this wear you out.” Krolia said. She helped Keith and Acxa settle down under blankets, weaving a story to ease the two to sleep.

If anyone noticed that Keith fell asleep halfway through his explanation of why Humans haven’t made it out of their solar system, no one paid it any mind.


	6. A Discussion With the Purple Space Dad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith can't sleep. Kolivan helps him work through his thoughts.

Sleep was a stranger to Keith that night. While his pack was sleeping, he was lying awake, his mind going a mile a minute. It was a lot for him to process, the fact that he had just reunited with his mom, only to find out that he had a twin sister he never knew about.

He supposed Acxa was nice enough. She wasn’t aggressive and she was actually gentle if anything. She understood Keith’s outburst and didn’t make him feel bad about it. He couldn’t understand why she had, though.

Keith jumped when he felt a hand settle on his shoulder.

“Why are you awake, kit? You should be asleep at this hour.” Kolivan said, his voice heavy and slow in his half-asleep state. Keith sighed a bit and rolled over to face Kolivan.

“I was just thinking, I couldn’t sleep.” Keith explained, curling against Kolivan and purring at the warmth that transferred to his body from the older Galra.

“Do you want to talk about what’s on your mind?” Kolivan questioned. Keith thought for a moment. Did he want to talk about it. From past experience, talking through the thoughts that kept him awake had helped him, but could Kolivan help with this?

“I don’t know. I just… I’m still trying to get used to seeing my mom and then I find out that I have a sister, a twin, and I never even knew and I don’t think its fair that mom didn’t tell me. Did she want me to find out on my own? Because I wouldn’t have. And she says she left for my own good but I always felt so alone and like she left because of me. I didn’t even know her.” Keith said. Kolivan didn’t say anything throughout the entire rant, listening intently to what Keith was getting off of his chest. That’s what Keith liked about Kolivan. He always let Keith finish before offering his two cents. Everyone else tried to input theirs halfway through his rants, but Kolivan politely listened. A few times, Keith had thought that Kolivan had tuned out because he was so silent. But, as it turns out, he had always simply been listening to Keith’s rants, paying attention to every word so he could formulate good and helpful response.

“Well, as much as I would want to help you with this, I can’t bring myself to do so. I have never experienced something like what you are, and giving advice seems unproductive seeing as how I have not one clue as to what may be going on in your head. All I know is that getting used to this is going to take time to get used to the situation, and none of us will blame you for taking your time to adjust.” Kolivan said.

That was another thing Keith loved about his pack. They never gave him advice on things they had never experienced. They were always honest in saying that they wouldn’t help him if they had no clue what they were talking about. Keith knew, that way, that any advice he was given was tried and true, and could possibly help.

“Yeah, I know it’ll take time, but I don’t want it to” Keith said. Kolivan couldn’t help but chuckle, ruffling Keith’s hair.

“Such an impatient kit. It’ll take time, but then you’ll have time to get to know Krolia and Acxa.” Kolivan said. Keith nodded and yawned, leaning against Kolivan.

“Its time for you to get to bed, Keith. You know you’ll be in a bad mood if you don’t sleep.” Kolivan said, laying Keith down in the nest and draping a blanket over him. He stayed awake until he was sure Keith was asleep, before settling in bed himself.


	7. Sleepy Mornings and Markings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith has Krolia's markings and it leads to sweet bonding time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry I didn't update this for so long!! Luckily, next Thursday is the last day of the school year for me, so I'll be updating a lot more often after then! In the meantime, I have a couple stories lined up to be published over the next week and a new chapter of this, hopefully!

The next morning, Keith was invited to eat breakfast with Acxa. She made it clear that he didn’t have to, but Keith thought it’d be nice to get to know his twin sister, so he agreed happily.

“I’m really sorry about yesterday, Acxa. I didn’t mean to take my anger out on you.” Keith said when he sat down. Acxa smiled gently and shook her head.

“Its not a big deal Keith. I understand why you were mad. Of course, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t do it again, though.” She said. Keith nodded and smiled.

“Of course! I promise it won’t happen again.” Keith said. Acxa nodded a bit and frowned when she saw the contents of Keith’s plate.

“That isn’t nearly enough to be filling, Keith! Are you sure that’s all you want to eat?” Acxa asked, her brows furrowing in worry for her brother. Keith nodded a bit, though he was touched by how concerned Acxa was about his health.

“I’m fine, Acxa, I promise. This is enough for me. My stomach can’t hold as much as a Galra’s can comfortably, so I usually eat until I’m full and have protein bars later when I get hungry again. Trust me, its fine, I had it cleared with Ulaz.” Keith said. The doctor had worked with Keith to create a general meal plan so he got the nutrition needed for a Galra kit, as well as making sure he didn’t eat so much he was uncomfortable. They adjusted the meal plan together every once in a while as Keith’s nutritional needs were met and he didn’t need to eat quite as much to replenish much needed nutrients that he had missed while eating the normal amount for a human. 

“Are you sure? I don’t want you passing out during training because of a lack of nutrients.” Acxa said, tilting her head. Keith smiled widely for a moment. Acxa was extremely easy to get along with, but Keith supposed that was because they had very similar personalities.

“I promise its fine. I’ll be fine. Besides, Antok would probably eat me alive if I passed out during training, seeing as how he spent my first few months keeping me from training so often and so hard that I passed out.” He said, shrugging. “I appreciate your concern, though, its nice.” he added. 

Acxa got up after she finished her meal and gestured for Keith to follow her. Confused, Keith did so, soon recognizing the hallway that the basking room was situated in. The hallway was cold and made him shiver under the lights, but that was the same for every other area of the base. It was why he always wore sweaters and warm pants, and he had hot tea whenever he had downtime. But, as the pair stepped into the basking room, Keith felt a rush of warmth over his skin that caused him to shiver harder for a moment before relaxing, a sigh of satisfaction making its way out of him. Acxa couldn’t help but snort with laughter for a moment.

“I figured you would like it in here. Its warm and nice, and I’ve always found it to be a nice place to relax before training. At least, mom makes me do that so that I don’t get sick.” Acxa said, shrugging and stretching out on the grass-like carpet, patting the spot next to her in invitation. Keith sat down and stretched, yawning a bit. The warmth reminded him of the soft heated blanket he always used in the nest at night, and it gave him a sleepy feeling that settled in his bones. 

“It feels so nice. I’m always so cold in the rest of the building.” Keith said, stretching out on the grass and squirming until he found a comfortable position. Acxa nodded in understanding.

“Yeah, I am too a lot of the time. Most Galra have a lot of fur, so its colder to accommodate that. I suggest a heating pad embedded in your clothes. They’re pretty easy to set up, and I know Ulaz uses them because of his thinner fur, so I know he can help you set it up in your clothes.” Acxa said, laughing when she saw Keith struggling to keep his eyes open. His eyes would close for several seconds and his breathing would even out like he was asleep, but then his eyes would snap open and he would act like he wasn’t just moments away from sleep. 

“You can sleep if you want Keith, I’ll wake you up when we can go to training.” Acxa said, watching as Keith drifted off to sleep.

-

When Keith woke up, he saw Krolia sitting next to him, running her hands through his hair gently and humming something that sounded vaguely familiar, like a lullaby that had been sung to him long ago, before he had the ability to understand what was being sung to him and who was singing it. He looked up and shifted, clinging to her arm briefly before sitting up. Krolia smiled gently and smoothed out his hair.

“Antok said you can skip training today, my kit. According to him, you did not get a lot of sleep last night.” Krolia said, adjusting the blanket she had draped over Keith. 

“I don’ wanna skip training.” Keith said groggily, already halfway back to sleep. Krolia smiled a bit and ruffled Keith’s hair.

“I’ll let you go when you aren’t so tired your speech is slurred, kit.” She said. Keith looked up at her and reached up, running his hand across the stripe marks on her cheeks and jaw. 

“Tiger stripes.” Keith said softly, smiling sleepily. Krolia smiled fondly at Keith.

“Yeah, they kind of are like tiger stripes, huh?” She said. Keith hesitated and reached towards his own cheek, brushing aside a few longer locks of hair to reveal markings that were very similar.

“They’re the same shape.” he mumbled in wonder. Krolia stared in surprise for a moment, reaching forward and stroking the long stripe with the tips of her fingers.

“Yes, my kit, they are. Why were you hiding them behind your fur?” She questioned, brushing aside longer fur on his other cheek to reveal a matching stripe on the other cheek.

“I didn’ think they were normal. So I hid them. I don’ wanna stand out more than I do already.” Keith said. “But its like your’s. I always wondered if I was like you in any way. And I am!” he said. Krolia wondered if Keith was always this open when he was tired.

“Yes, my kit, they are like mine. They are not different in any way. Well, they aren’t common, but there are a lot of different markings on the blades here that are unique. Would you think Kolivan’s red markings were weird?” she asked. Keith shook his head slowly.

“No! They’re cool and I don’t think it would feel right if Kolivan didn’t have them.” he said. Krolia nodded and grinned.

“Right. Its the same way with your markings. They’re unique to you, and make you seem more like yourself. Show them off, my kit. No one will judge you. Everyone has a unique marking on them somewhere.” she said. Keith grinned and yawned.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’ll show them off! But before that, I’m going back to sleep.” he said, locating a heated blanket in Krolia’s nest and shuffling to the spot he always slept in when he fell asleep in the nest. Krolia gently tucked the blanket around Keith until he was comfortable, adjusting the setting on the heated blanket so that Keith was comfortably warm but not overheating.

“Sleep well, my kit. You are always welcome here.” Krolia said softly, listening to Keith’s breath even out slowly as he drifted off once again.


	8. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Acxa is jealous of the attention Keith is getting from Krolia

Krolia didn’t notice that anything was wrong, at first.

She was just so happy that her son wanted to try and integrate himself into her small pack, which consisted of herself and her daughter. Though, she supposed, in hindsight, there would obviously be jealousy from Acxa. 

She had had a lifetime of having her mom to herself to cuddle with and have the undivided attention of. It was like an only child becoming a big sibling and being jealous of the baby for getting all of the parent’s attention, except it was Acxa suddenly being introduced to her twin and having to share her mother’s attention. 

Keith had started to spend some of his afternoons in Krolia’s nest, napping or play fighting. It had just recently evolved to Keith worming his way into Krolia’s side to nap. Krolia was extremely happy about this development, but it seemed that Acxa was not.

All her life, Krolia had been Acxa’s mother and Acxa’s alone, so could anyone blame her for being upset? She knew that Keith deserved Krolia’s attention just as much as she did, but at the same time, who did Keith think he was, coming in and stealing Krolia’s attention like he was? She had been separated from her mother for years, and just when she got to be with her again, Keith had the nerve to step in. 

She hated him.

Every time Keith crawled into Krolia’s arms for a nap, Acxa resisted the urge to growl at him in warning, for she knew Krolia would scold her. But what could she do? 

Well, anger management issues did run in the family, it seemed.

-

Play fighting was normal for kits, a passtime that developed a kit’s fighting abilities and hunting abilities, which were a leftover instinct from early Galra. It was also a fun activity for kits to engage in, both with siblings and friends, as well as family members. 

It had taken a long while to get Keith to even attempt to play fight, since he was so stubborn and insisted he didn’t have these instincts. However, Antok could see the way his fighting during training to turn to a form a play fighting. It had eventually caught on to Keith, and he could often be found spending his afternoons play fighting with Regris and Acxa.

Today, he was play fighting in Krolia’s nest with Acxa, his mom watching on in amusement. At first, Krolia didn’t see anything wrong, all she saw was her two children bouncing around and tackling each other and laughing. Well, Keith was laughing, which should have been Krolia’s first tip off that something was wrong. Acxa had a fierce determination in her eyes as she chased Keith around the room, tackling him to the ground roughly. Keith’s eyes widened in surprise, starting to worry because of how harsh the tackle was. He tried to get up, before realizing that he was being pinned to the ground by strong hands. He whimpered in fright and tried to get free, unused to such rough treatment during a play fight.

Krolia perked up and frowned when she saw how roughly Acxa was treating Keith. She got up and was about to pull her off of Keith, but Acxa pulled out her blade and slashed at the hands that were trying to push her off of Keith. Keith yelped in pain and a felt tears fill his eyes as he held his injured hand close to him.

Krolia gasped and pulled Acxa off of Keith, taking her blade and growling in warning to her, before turning to Keith.

“Oh, kit, come here.” She said, letting Keith crawl into her lap. She gently grabbed the injured hand and shushed Keith’s hesitant whimpers with a soothing rumble, examining the hand with a frown. She reached over to the first aid kit that she kept in her room and grabbed something that Keith thought looked similar to a cotton pad. Krolia put a small bit of what Keith recognized as a disinfectant, applying it to the injury. Keith whimpered at the slight sting and started to cry, burying his face in Krolia’s shoulder.

“Oh, kit, its okay. I know it hurts, I know, but it’ll feel better soon. Its not too deep, I promise, we just need to wrap it with a bandage, okay?” Krolia explained in hopes of soothing Keith. Keith nodded and took a deep, shuddering breath, clinging to Krolia. It didn’t even hurt all that much, Keith was just crying from surprise and honest sadness that Acxa would hurt him on purpose like that. All of the other injuries he had gotten from play fights had been purely accidental, like Regris hitting him too hard or accidentally scratching him with his claws. Keith whimpered and let out another sob, digging his other hand into Krolia’s shirt, clinging on.

Krolia grabbed a gauze bandage roll and wrapped it around Keith hand, securing it. She held Keith gently and rubbed his back. She looked at Acxa and frowned in disapproval. 

“Why would you do that to your brother, Acxa?” She asked, frowning. Acxa huffed and turned her face away stubbornly. Krolia frowned and got up, Keith held in her arms like he weighed nothing.

“Keith, I need to talk to Acxa for a bit, are you okay with spending some time alone?” she asked, feeling bad for even having to ask Keith to spend some time alone when he was so upset. Keith nodded, but he didn’t seem happy about it. 

Krolia set him down in his own room and promised to be back soon, and to come get her if he needed anything. She went back to her own room and frowned at Acxa.

“Do you want to explain why you cut your brother’s hand?” She asked. Acxa frowned and shook her head.

“Well, I was planning on making your punishment no training for a week and no having your blade for a week, but I could make it two weeks if you don’t want to tell me.” Krolia said. She knew Acxa loved training. Acxa gasped and sputtered, like it was an awful punishment. Krolia sighed softly and looked at Acxa expectantly.

“I don’t want Keith here.” Acxa admitted, looking away. Krolia frowned, reminding herself that her twins were still young kits, barely toddlers if they were fully Galra.

“Come now, Acxa, surely you don’t mean that? You were cuddling with him just a few Vargas ago.” Krolia said gently, sitting down next to her. Acxa shook her head, frustrated tears filling her eyes. 

“He’s here all the time!” Acxa tried to explain, whining miserably. Krolia frowned and gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Yes, he is. Can you explain why that bothers you?” Krolia asked gently, wiping the tears away with her thumb. Acxa whined again and frowned.

“He’s always here.” She said again. Krolia sighed softly.

“Yes, I know he is, but I can’t help you unless you explain why that bothers you so badly that you harmed him.” Krolia explained, carding her hands through Acxa’s short hair. 

“He’s always with you.” She said, and Krolia finally understood what her daughter was trying to explain. Acxa was jealous of the attention Keith was getting, and Krolia couldn’t blame her. She had been so excited to have Keith back in her life after so long that, looking back, she had all but forgotten about her daughter when he was around. Krolia frowned, though she wasn’t angry at Acxa for being jealous. No, she was angry at herself for letting her daughter feel like she was pushed to the side in favor of her brother.

“You’re upset because Keith is always around me and I haven’t given as much attention to you?” Krolia clarified, sighing sadly when Acxa nodded and let out a soft sob. Krolia gathered her into her lap and held her close.

“I am so sorry, Acxa. I suppose I have been ignoring you a bit since Keith came back, haven’t I?” Krolia said. She didn’t give Acxa time to answer before continuing, “I am so sorry for that. I promise I will try harder to give you both equal attention, I promise you that. But, you understand that that does not give you the right to hurt Keith like that, right? It was not his fault, you should have come to me with that instead of blaming him.” Acxa nodded and curled close.

“I’m sorry, mom.” She said softly. Krolia smiled gently.

“I know you are, my kit, but it is not me you should be apologizing to. Do you want me to get Keith so you can apologize or do you think you need a bit of one-on-one time with me?” Krolia asked gently, not wanting to force Acxa to have to share her attention again so soon after admitting that that was the reason she had been so upset in the first place. Acxa curled close and let out another sob, clinging to Krolia. Krolia wrapped her arms securely around Acxa and held her, rumbling soothingly.

“Take all the time you need, my kit, we are in no hurry.” She said gently, rubbing her back. She never had been one to try to stop her kit’s crying if they weren’t done, remembering holding Acxa for hours on end as she cried. Now, she had that opportunity to hold Keith the same way as he cried, but Acxa was her main focus at the moment.

-

Acxa held onto Krolia for a while, even after she had stopped crying. 

“Okay, I’m ready to apologize to Keith.” She whispered after a bit, her voice scratchy after crying. Krolia handed her a cup of water and got up, going to find Keith.

Keith was still in his bedroom, dozing off on his bed. Krolia was surprised that the bed was not a nest, but she supposed it was normal for Keith. She reached down and gently shook Keith awake, scooping him up and taking him back to her nest. Keith smiled and leaned his head against her shoulder, yawning. 

Krolia set him down in the nest, chuckling at Keith’s bewildered expression over the fact that she was able to carry him with ease. Acxa sat nearby and sighed.

“I’m sorry, Keith. I know I hurt you but it wasn’t your fault, I misdirected my anger and frustration to you and that’s not fair at all, I’m really sorry.” she said sincerely. Keith smiled gently and hugged her.

“I forgive you, Acxa. I mean, it would be sort of hypocritical of me not to, considering I did the same thing to you once.” Keith said, smiling. Acxa grinned and hugged him tightly.

“Is your hand okay?” She asked worriedly. Keith nodded and offered his hand for Acxa to examine, having learned that many Galra didn’t feel completely assured that their friend was okay unless they could see. 

“Yeah, its fine. Mom said it would be fine. Besides, it wasn’t even that deep. I didn’t even need stitches.” Keith said, smiling. Acxa nodded in understanding and hugged him close, holding the injured hand gently as she examined it. Keith smiled and started to drift off against Acxa, his breathing evening out. Acxa smiled softly and looked at Krolia.

“Mom, can Keith have a late dinner? I really don’t want to wake him up.” Acxa said. Krolia smiled and nodded.

“As long as we make sure he sticks to the diet Ulaz has him on. He needs a lot of nutrients and vitamins that humans don’t need, so he never ate it since he grew up on Earth.” Krolia said, watching with soft eyes as Acxa wrapped Keith in a blanket and laid him down in the nest.


	9. Yorak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith wants to know about a nickname Krolia starts calling him. It leads to a conversation about Keith's dad.
> 
> (Spoilers for season 6, so watch out if you haven't watched it yet)

“Hello, my Yorak.” Krolia greeted Keith one morning. Keith took a moment to realize she was talking to him.

It just got more and more frequent after that.

Krolia would call him the name in a gentle way all the time now, and Keith knew it was meant as a nickname. But he just didn’t understand what it meant.

-

“Not that I don’t like the name Yorak, what does it mean?” Keith asked curiously one afternoon, lounging in Krolia’s nest. He had come with the intent of play fighting with Acxa, only to find that his twin had come down an illness. According to Ulaz, who was treating her in the comfort of her nest, it wasn’t harmful unless under the most extreme circumstances. It relaxed Keith significantly to know that it wasn’t a bizarre space virus that would kill her in a few hours. 

Ulaz had long since left the nest after giving Krolia instructions on how to treat Acxa. While the illness wasn’t harmful, it wasn’t especially common and, as a result, Acxa had never come down with it before. 

“It means ‘little warrior’. I thought it would be a fitting name.” Krolia responded. Keith laughed quietly, knowing that Krolia was right.

“That makes sense. It’s nice, though, I like it.” Keith said softly, mindful of the fact that Acxa was asleep just a few feet away.

“It was what I wanted to name you, originally, if you were born with dominant Galran genes.” Krolia said. Keith grinned, that small part of his life previously unknown to him. 

“I couldn’t imagine myself being anything but Keith, really.” He admitted. Krolia chuckled and ruffled his hair fondly, nodding in agreement.

“Neither could I, really. I still wanted to name you Yorak even when you were born with Galran features. You just looked like a little warrior! Your father looked at me like I was crazy and suggested Keith.” She said, her voice fond as she recalled memories of the human she had loved.

“Did you have names picked for Acxa if she was born with human features?” Keith asked. Krolia shrugged as she pulled Keith close.

“Well, in a way we did. You must understand that for… obvious reasons, I couldn’t exactly go to a doctor regularly, so we actually didn’t know we were having twins, nor a gender on either of you. Your father and I agreed on names for the scenario of a boy or a girl, and if they were born with human or Galran features. You, obviously, were going to be either Yorak or Keith. And for a girl, we decided on Acxa or Elizabeth.” Krolia said. Keith smiled as he looked over at Acxa.

“I can’t imagine her being an Elizabeth. It just doesn’t sound right for her.” Keith said. Krolia laughed and rested her head against Keith’s hair.

“What was dad like when I was little?” Keith asked curiously. Krolia smiled fondly, lost in thought for a minute before responding.

“Your father loved both you and Acxa more than he could ever say. He wasn’t around too often due to his job. He was a firefighter, so he was away for long hours. But he never failed to be there when I needed him. I never really minded that he wasn’t around as much as I would have liked, I always thought his job was admirable. He always came home tired but willing to play with you two kits. He was an attentive father and partner. Sometimes, I would wake up in the middle of the night to find that he had taken care of you during the night so I could sleep. He was destroyed when I had to leave and, as a result, had to take Acxa with me. He kept trying to get me to stay, but he knew, ultimately, that it was the right thing to do for me and for Acxa. He loved you so, so much, Keith, please know that. You didn’t get to grow up with him but I know he loves you.” Krolia said. Keith smiled gently as Krolia explained what his dad had been like.

“I wanted to be a firefighter just like him when I got older. Well, I was just three or four at the time, and interests change, and now I’m a pilot.” Keith said. Krolia nodded and wrapped Keith in a blanket. She frowned when she saw tears in Keith’s eyes.

“Why are you upset, kit?” she asked gently, rubbing Keith’s back and rumbling soothingly. Keith shrugged a bit and wiped at his eyes, taking a deep breath.

“I’m not really upset, per se. I just… I was too young to really remember what dad was like. It’s nice to finally know what he was like, even if just a little bit. But it just makes me miss him more, because what I do remember is that he was so nice and he loved me.” Keith said, burying his face in Krolia’s shoulder as he let the tears flow at last.

Krolia buried her face in Keith’s hair and, for the first time since hearing of his death from Keith, allowed herself to cry and mourn the man she had fallen in love with.


	10. Keith Meets Some New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Acxa's friends come for a visit.
> 
> Acxa is the type of sister that will try to force their brother into letting her do their makeup.
> 
> Keith is way too tired for this.
> 
> Krolia saves the day, as always.

“Keith!” Acxa called excitedly. Keith glanced over, blearily rubbing at his eyes as he struggled to stay awake. He had just woken up and was heading to breakfast when Acxa had met him in the hallway.

“Quieter, please. I just woke up.” Keith said. Acxa tilted her head before nodding and hugging him as a greeting. 

“Some of my friends came to visit! Do you want to meet them?” She asked, her voice quieter. Keith leaned his head against Acxa’s shoulder, drifting off to sleep again. Acxa shook him awake and Keith grumbled, clearly unhappy with being woken up.

“Yeah, sure, I’ll meet them.” Keith mumbled. 

“Alright. Come on, girls!” Acxa called. Keith looked over, seeing a tall, bright pink woman with a multi-colored appendage on her head that Keith had mistaken for a ponytail upon first glance. He saw an even taller, larger woman that looked incredibly intimidating to Keith’s sleep-addled mind. 

“These are my friends, Ezor.” Acxa gestured to the pink lady. “And Zethrid.” She said, gesturing to the intimidating woman. Keith waved tiredly and looked pleadingly at Acxa to introduce him for him. He felt a bit too tired to talk much at the moment.

“Girls, this is my twin brother Keith.” Acxa introduced. Ezor leaned close, too close for Keith’s comfort, before speaking. 

“You look like the younger twin.” Ezor said, her voice much too loud and peppy for such an early hour, in Keith’s opinion. 

“Yeah, I am, so what?” Keith asked irritably. Zethrid pulled Ezor away from Keith’s personal space, which he was infinitely grateful for. He lurched forward when Zethrid patted his back roughly.

“Can I go to breakfast now?” Keith asked Acxa. Acxa nodded and lead him to the dining hall, her two friends following. Keith grabbed a plate of food, piling it with his favorites without care for the diet he and Ulaz had crafted for him, a perfect balance between his human nutritional needs and his Galran nutritional needs. But, he could tell it was going to be a long day, so why not indulge himself?

-

Let it be known that Keith was not a fan of makeup. 

He dabbled in nail polish here and there. It was enjoyable to experiment with different designs and colors, but he never really did it consistently. He just found it tedious to keep up consistently.

He enjoyed wearing dresses. They were comfortable in most cases and allowed him a chance to express himself that had previously been unknown to him. Plus, he thought they made him look rather attractive. His particular favorite was a dress that was warm, made out of a sweater-like material that Lance had helped him pick out. Plus, if he didn’t want to wear it as a dress, it was easy to roll up the bottom hem so it became a soft shirt. 

He had realized that those small enjoyments, ones that were considered feminine by human standards, applied to all genders depending on the species of alien. For Galra, it was typically pretty accepted. 

But makeup? Keith was not a fan.

He had dabbled in it once on Earth, and he didn’t really find it fun. He had let Allura and Pidge experiment with different colors on him, mostly because he didn’t know how to politely turn them down. He didn’t know why he hated makeup with such a passion, he just did.

So, when he was dragged by the three women to Acxa’s room, dread filled his body as he saw the three girls pull out Acxa’s makeup. Acxa only really had it for special occasions, and it was mostly muted colors, but it still wasn’t Keith’s favorite scenario in the world. 

Keith opened his mouth to protest at the same moment Ezor came at him with some lipstick-like substance. It tasted horrible when Ezor accidentally jabbed it into his mouth, and Keith spent the next few minutes in despair.

Keith had enough when Zethrid tried to put eyeshadow on him, but ended up jabbing the brush straight into his eye. Keith kicked the larger woman out of the way and darted out of the room. 

He sprinted to the nearest bathroom, wetting his hands and trying to wipe the makeup off. He felt like crying, and he supposed he had just been having a long day in general, and he just woken up. He looked in the mirror, his heart sinking with realization.

The makeup was waterproof.

The Galra hated being in water and generally avoided it at all costs, but they made some damn good waterproof makeup. It hadn’t budged even the slightest bit no matter how much Keith scrubbed at it. 

Keith felt tears start to trail down his cheeks, and he wiped at his eyes, trying to think of a way to get it off. Perhaps Krolia had some sort of thing that could remove it? Keith made his way to Krolia’s room and laid next to her miserably, burying his face in her side.

-

Krolia had already gotten up pretty early that morning, and had nothing to do until the afternoon. She had been watching a show on her datapad, and she hadn’t even realized that Keith had entered the room until she felt his weight settle next to him. She looked over, frowning when she saw that Keith was crying.

“Oh, kit, what’s wrong?” Krolia asked. Keith sniffled and shrugged.

“I don’t like Acxa’s friends.” Keith whispered. Krolia frowned when she noticed the makeup.

“Is this about the makeup you currently have on?” Krolia asked. Keith nodded and wiped at his eyes.

“I didn’t want to have it on, and Zethrid poked my eye with the brush and it hurt. And then I tried to wash it off but it’s waterproof.” Keith said. Krolia nodded and helped Keith sit up, reaching over to her desk.

“Yes, that is an interesting and often annoying perk of Galran makeup. But don’t worry, I have something to wipe it off.” Krolia said, grabbing a makeup removing cloth and gently wiping it across Keith’s skin. When all of it was removed, Krolia pulled Keith close, rumbling.

“Everything is okay now, kit. You’ve just had a weird day, huh?” Krolia guessed. Normally, it took a lot more for Keith to get worked up like that.

“Yeah. I’m really tired and I just wanted to be alone and they wouldn’t let me be alone.” Keith said. Krolia nodded and wrapped a blanket around Keith’s shoulders.

“I understand, my kit. I’ll talk to Acxa next time I see her, but for now, do you want to stay with me and relax?” Krolia asked. Keith nodded and leaned against Krolia, huffing in misery. Krolia smiled and switched the show she was watching to one she knew Keith enjoyed, setting the datapad to settle between them so they could both see.

“Now, do you not like Acxa’s friends just because of the makeup?” Krolia asked. Keith shrugged and shook his head, leaning his head on Krolia’s shoulder.

“No, not really. Ezor is just… so loud, and Zethrid is a little intimidating.” Keith said softly. Krolia nodded and rubbed his back, listening intently to what Keith had to say. 

“I understand. But, Zethrid and Ezor are like family, so you’re going to be around them a lot.” Krolia said. Keith looked up and tilted his head.

“Family?” He asked.

“Well, they’re like members of the family. Friends that are so close that they’re basically family.” Krolia tried to explain. Keith nodded and yawned.

“I guess that makes sense. Like… like me and Shiro?” Keith tried to clarify. Krolia thought for a moment and shrugged.

“Well, sort of. Ezor and Zethrid are like sisters to Acxa, so I guess… yeah, like you and Shiro.” Krolia said, glad that Keith could find something to relate it to to better understand the situation. “Now, you’re yawning, kit, take a nap. Have you eaten yet today?” Krolia asked. Keith nodded and nestled deeper under his blankets. 

“Yeah, I had breakfast.” Keith mumbled. Krolia nodded and held Keith securely as he fell asleep.

-

Acxa, Ezor, and Zethrid walked in a few vargas later, talking loudly. Krolia quickly made a ‘shhh’ sound, gesturing to Keith, who was still asleep. The three instantly quieted down when they saw Keith. 

“Acxa, Keith tells me you tried to force him into putting on makeup.” Krolia said gently. Acxa nodded and looked at Ezor and Zethrid.

“Well… yeah, we did.” Acxa said. Krolia nodded and ran her hand through Keith’s hair.

“He did not enjoy it. He was quite distressed over it, in fact.” Krolia said. Acxa frowned and looked at Keith.

“Oh… I’m sorry, I didn’t know he didn’t like it.” Acxa said. 

“It is not me you should be apologizing to, kit. But wait until Keith wakes up on his own.” Krolia said. Acxa nodded and sat down. Ezor and Zethrid looked at each other, seeming to have a conversation without talking.

“Krolia, we’d like to apologize to Keith to. We forced him into it as well.” Ezor said. Krolia smiled gently and glanced down at Keith.

“I’m sure he would appreciate your apologies as well.” Krolia said. Zethrid looked over and tilted her head when she saw Keith.

“Why is he so… tiny?” She asked. Krolia chuckled and shook her head fondly.

“Keith and Acxa’s father was a human. Keith happened to take after his father’s species at birth, and humans are quite a bit smaller and leaner than Galra. He is actually at a pretty average height for his age by human standards, if on the low side of average.” Krolia said. Zethrid nodded and sat down with Ezor and Acxa.

-

Keith woke up a little bit before the lunch options opened in the dining hall. He sat up and clung to Krolia, whining tiredly. Krolia looked over and smiled, helping Keith sit up.

“I’m sorry, Keith. I shouldn’t have forced you into doing your makeup.” Acxa said. Keith looked over and took a moment to process the statement. 

“It’s okay, Acxa, I forgive you.” Keith said.

“We’re sorry too.” Ezor said. 

“We shouldn’t have assumed you would be okay with it.” Zethrid added.

“It’s okay, guys. I’m okay now, so…” Keith shrugged and yawned. Acxa smiled and patted Keith’s cheek to keep him awake. 

“I promise we’ll never do it again.” Acxa said. Keith nodded and blinked awake once Krolia removed his warm blanket. 

“Let’s go get lunch, I’m hungry.” Keith said, going off with his mom, his sister, and her sister’s two friends to have lunch.

**Author's Note:**

> Also I have a tumblr now!! Its legendary-marmorans, so if you wanna send over a request or just chat, I welcome it!


End file.
